Saudi motivations for low prices

Many analysts have sought to explain Saudi behaviour as an attempt to protect short-term market share – primarily by driving high-cost unconventional production out of the market. The evidence points, however, to a longer game that the oil industry still finds unthinkable. The Saudis are betting against oil.

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…the world’s primary petrostate understands the existential threat to oil demand spelled out by the scientific consensus on climate change. By keeping production levels high during the price crash, the Saudis can begin terminating higher-cost unconventional producers. These producers are a threat to the amount of oil the kingdom can unload before humanity has exhausted its austere carbon budget and the oil age ends.

Agreed

It's always surprised me that those who fear peak oil, don't understand that the deep pockets also understand the concept and have been laying the foundations for alternatives to oil, for quite some time.

I just assumed that Saudi Arabia was trying to grab as much market share as possible, as the age of fossil fuel, well, fossilizes.

The greater concern is, after the oil age, what will back the U.S. dollar? A quick answer would be supremacy in the heavens, just above the stratosphere. If the Anglo Americans can control this arena, through advanced satellite systems, they can gate-keep and control global financial transactions. (See Catherine Austin Fitts — The break away civilization)

You can see a pivot away from the Middle East, in terms of "national security," at the moment.

It's possible that the forces that are aligned with Trump, represent big money turning it's back on the Middle East and oil and preparing for something altogether new. Too bad the new order could also bring with it full on domestic fascism and terrible antagonism between China and the U.S.– for starters.